1 » His behavior in the Jonathan Martin bullying scandal taken into consideration, former Florida Gators center Mike Pouncey remains in the Miami Dolphins future plans, according to the Miami Herald’s Armando Salguero, who reported Friday that the team is “committed” to Pouncey and plans in May to pick up a team option to keep him in Miami for a fifth season in 2015. Pouncey is set to earn $1.63 million in 2014 and will likely want to renegotiate his contract after the Dolphins pick up their option. This in theory would give the team a full season to evaluate Pouncey’s behavior off of the field and give them more data to decide whether or not signing him to a huge deal would be a wise long-term investment. “Pouncey is an excellent player,” new Miami general manager Dennis Hickey said on the radio Thursday. “I’ve had good conversations with him in the last month. I’m excited about the future.”

2 » Miami Heat power forward Udonis Haslem is playing the fewest minutes of his career, shooting career-lows from the field and charity stripe and barely making an impact on the court for the defending champions, but his selflessness, relationship with the franchise and impact in the locker room all kept him off the trading block this season. According to Dan LeBatard, Miami rejected a trade offer from Philadelphia that included Evan Turner even though Turner would have been able to give the Heat an extra scorer off the bench, help their title chances this season and save the team $4.62 million against the luxury cap next season. By doing so, Miami is showing considerable loyalty to Haslem, who sacrificed more than $10 million in salary as a free agent in 2010 to sign with his hometown team (where he has played since 2003) rather than move elsewhere. The undrafted free agent out of Florida is a three-time NBA champion with the Heat (2006, 2012-13) and Miami’s all-time leading rebounder.

3 » The Chicago Tribune’s Chicago Bears reporter Brad Biggs wrote on Friday that he “does not expect” former Gators safety Major Wright back with the team in 2014. Wright, a four-year veteran who turned 25 this year and still has plenty of football left, will be looking for his first payday after playing out his four-year, $3.478 million rookie contract last season. The No. 75 overall pick in the third round of the 2010 NFL Draft, Wright has registered nine interceptions, three forced fumbles, two fumble recoveries and three defensive touchdowns for the Bears over the last three seasons. There is no doubt that Wright will play in the NFL next season, though a long-term deal may be unlikely as most that cover the team believe he had a relatively rough 2013 campaign.

4 » Gators incoming freshman guard Zach Hodskins, a one-handed preferred walk-on who will join the team next season, will be attending his first game as a Florida signee on Saturday. Though he will not be able to practice with the Gators until the summer, Hodskins told OnlyGators.com on Thursday that he has officially enrolled at UF and will watch as many practices as he can in the near future. OnlyGators.com wrote a special feature on Hodskins last October, which you can read by clicking the link below.

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